Zambezi Expedition puts malaria in the spotlight

Novartis is part of a multi-agency partnership supporting an ambitious journey along the Zambezi River, highlighting the difficulty of delivering mosquito nets and malaria treatment to remote African communities.

The Roll Back Malaria Zambezi Expedition is a 2-month voyage, which began on March 29 2008, negotiating the 2,500 kilometer length of the Zambezi River, from its source in Northwestern Zambia to its delta in Mozambique. On April 25, World Malaria Day, the expedition reached Livingstone, Zambia - the expedition's half-way point - to take part in the Roll Back Malaria World Malaria Day commemoration event. The theme of the day is 'Malaria - a disease without borders', which is aptly reflected in the team's journey through six countries.

The Expedition Leaders, Helge Bendl and Andy Leemann were inspired by the Zambezi Expedition undertaken by the British Explorer David Livingstone from 1858-1864. His plan was to travel from the delta to find the source, but the rapids of Cahora Bassa blocked the way for his paddle steamer. Mary Livingstone, the explorer's wife, contracted malaria and died during the journey.

"Every 30 seconds a child dies from malaria in Africa."

Many of the difficulties that beset the Livingstone expedition remain, however the 2008 Zambezi Expedition is much better equipped to deal with them. They are traveling in inflatable boats suited to the shallow waters and extreme conditions of Africa's fourth longest river with full land and air back-up support. As they pass through each country, the team is seeking to highlight the challenges faced by malaria control workers and to showcase success stories.

"We have been overwhelmed by the determination of local staff in charge of National Malaria Control Programs and communities, whose efforts to get malaria commodities to where they are needed most are truly amazing. Access is indeed one of the biggest challenges and is often compromised by flooding, cross-border population movement and lack of health facilities in these areas," says expedition leader Helge Bendl.

Malaria - preventable and treatable

Malaria is a life-threatening disease, transmitted by mosquitoes, affecting a staggering 40% of the world's population. The disease has been known for centuries, but remains a major health problem in the world's poorest countries. More than one million people die of malaria every year - mostly infants, young children and pregnant women in Africa. It kills more children in Africa than any other disease, including AIDS, and in developing countries accounts for up to 40% of national health expenditures.

Children and pregnant women are at the greatest risk. Effective treatments are now available, including the Novartis product Coartem which quickly and successfully cures malaria. However, both prevention and cure can be hindered by poverty, a resistance to change, inaccessible populations, poor infrastructure, corruption and conflict.

Coartem - a highly effective anti-malarial

• The Novartis product Coartem is a highly effective artemisinin-based combination therapy (ACT) that combines two key anti-malarial medicines
• Coartem shows cure rates up to 95% even in areas of multi-drug resistance
• In 2007, Novartis delivered more than 66 million Coartem treatments to Africa, saving an estimated 220,000 lives
• Novartis works in a unique public-private collaboration with international health organizations to provide Coartem at no profit to people in low-income countries
• A 3-day course of Coartem tablets cures malaria and is recommended by the World Health Organization
• 22 African countries have officially adopted Coartem as their first line of treatment against malaria

Novartis partners in the fight against malaria

The problems involved in preventing and treating malaria effectively will only be solved by considerable multi-agency co-operation. In the same way, the Roll Back Malaria Zambezi Expedition is a partnership of individuals and organizations. In the boats are an award-winning journalist, a seasoned explorer and a volunteer crew. Back-up support and coordination are being provided by the Roll Back Malaria Partnership Secretariat in Geneva, logistics experts and press liaison teams in Johannesburg and Lusaka, and the project is funded by a variety of non-profit institutions and private companies like Novartis. Central to the project are the National Malaria Control Programs of the six countries surrounding the Zambezi. Every Ministry of Health in Africa has a National Malaria Control Program (NMCP) department, which focuses on coordinating resources to prevent and treat malaria.

The countries bordering the Zambezi have their individual stories of struggle and success, which reflect many of the issues faced by countries affected by malaria. For example, in Zambia, a large proportion of the population is protected by nets and spraying programs, and access to ACTs (artemisinin-based combination therapies) is the highest in Africa, resulting in a dramatic reduction in pediatric malaria cases. Yet in neighboring Angola, the healthcare systems have suffered from 27 years of civil war and only a minority of the population have access to anti-malaria measures.

The incidence of malaria can be reduced by:

• the use of bed nets
• insecticide spraying programs
• spraying and drainage of mosquito habitats

The Roll Back Malaria Zambezi Expedition is bringing this devastating, yet preventable disease to the public's attention. You can track their progress live and see images of the river environment and the communities visited by logging on the expedition website.

"This ambitious river expedition is an effective cross-border collaboration which mobilizes communities in all six countries and has strong political backing is a recipe for success." says Dr. Awa-Marie Coll-Seck, the Executive Director of Roll Back Malaria Partnership.

Other sponsors

The Roll Back Malaria Zambezi Expedition is being sponsored by Coca Cola Africa Foundation, ExxonMobil, MACEPA, Medicines for Malaria Venture, Nets for Life, Novartis, Malaria No More, Sumitomo Chemical, UN Foundation, and Vestergaard-Frandsen.

Learn more about our commitment to fighting Malaria by watching the video

 

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